There are no hard-and-fast rules or any special format for creating an impressive resume. However, there are a number of tips that can help you craft a resume that will stand out among the thousands that are received by head hunters and recruiters across the country.

Ensure Grammatical Correctness

This is fairly obvious, but your resume should be free of grammatical errors. Double check your spelling, and know that your word processor’s spell check will not be enough.

The tenses of sentences should also be accurate (i.e., descriptions of previous jobs in past tense and current details in present tense).

Highlight Responsibilities and Achievements

You want to come across as a results-oriented individual in the professional experience section of your resume - not merely as an individual who claims to have these qualities.  So, it is important that you provide substantiating evidence.

Your resume should project you as a serious, active, and intelligent individual. Back this up with goals you have accomplished in your previous jobs. The purpose should be to let the company know how your services can be of benefit without emphasis on what you desire from the employer.

Use Power Verbs

Power verbs that depict drive, determination, and strength should be used in your sentences. Here are some examples that you can use: accomplished, assumed responsibilities, structured, motivated, accelerated, launched, conducted, delegated, implemented, spearheaded, and trained.

Use PAR (problem-action-results) statements in your resume.

Make Sure to Include Only Relevant Information

Your resume needs to convey to the employer that you are a potential candidate for an interview. This can be done by conveying accurate and precise information about yourself that is relevant to the position that you apply for.

You sell yourself through your resume to someone whose estimation of your suitability is based only on the content and structure of that document. Tell employers how you can help them meet their existing needs by hiring you.

Skip Jargon When Unnecessary

Jargon is industry and sector specific, and the person who scans your resume may not be that familiar with your field of expertise or industry. That's why it's not a good idea to use terminology that might be foreign to them. They may not be able to understand clearly what a strength is on your part.

It may work against you if the jargon and abbreviations peculiar to your field of expertise are beyond their realm of understanding.

There is, however, a time to use jargon in your resume.  And that is when you are applying to a specific job posting.  This is when you want to use a reasonable amount of keywords from the employer’s own job posting to ensure that your resume gets picked up in their resume searches.

Quantify Your Previous Successes

Whenever there is a need to demonstrate your success with respect to your past work, make sure that you use actual numbers and examples.

Explicit details are not required, as they can be dealt with in the interview.

Never Lie

Lastly, another obvious one is to avoid any temptation to beef up your resume by stretching the truth however small. It may prove costly in the long run.

Following these tips can create a powerful resume that will make it a serious contender along the path to getting that interview. So get going, and GOOD LUCK!